Writing Cal's illicit acts off as some symptom of his rectifying with his sexuality becomes dangerous territory. At the end of the day, Cal is committing statutory rape when sleeping with Jules and, it's implied, a number of other underage people. The episode touches on toxic masculinity and the ways it is passed down through generations in a brief interaction with Cal and his father in the opening flashback, but it's still not enough to warrant sympathy for him. The show has yet to address the fact that Cal is a wealthy, influential white man, but portraying complex racial dynamics has never been one of Euphoria's strong suits. Making villains three-dimensional is an important part of storytelling, but Euphoria season 2 gets it wrong when it comes to Cal in a few ways. While we've seen more of the awful ways that Nate treats the people in his life, it is heavily implied that Nate's only repeating behavior he's learned from his father, including how to treat women and just how to be an all-around good person. All of this is meant to explain away the very bad things that both Nate and Cal have done. Cal's forceful oppression of his identity has manifested in anger issues that have then reared their ugly head in Nate, who treats his classmates and girlfriend Maddy as objects to be controlled. This also translates to his son Nate, one of the least likable characters on Euphoria. Related: Euphoria: Why Rue & Jules Shouldn't Be TogetherĮuphoria seems to be implying that, because Cal was forced to suppress who he was throughout his life, his anger and his sexual behavior of sleeping with local teenagers, somehow makes sense. Smash cut to the present and Euphoria seems to assume that the character of Cal has been figured out. In the morning, though, Cal is awakened by a phone call from Marsha (the future mother of Nate), telling him she is pregnant. This culminates in a drunken scene at a local bar where Cal and Derek kiss while dancing. They can't be together openly, so they pine for each other in secret. The flashback paints Cal and Derek as victims of circumstance and the social mores of the time. Euphoria season 2, episode 3 shows Cal in high school falling in love with his best friend Derek. Flashforward to Euphoria season 2 and Cal has become one of the most prominent characters of the HBO show right now, but not necessarily as the villain many presumed he would be.
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